Home Remedies For Burns

Home remedies for burns. This is one of the most painful conditions known to man. Burns pain too much. They cause blisters which pain for many days afterwards. The skin may become discolored and there can be scars. There are many remedies for burns which can help you relieve the pain and reduce the possibility of scarring. Minor burns can be easily treated with these remedies. However, if you have had a burn which is causing severe pain, one should quickly head to the hospital.

Burns are of three categories, as many of us know. First degree burns are the minor burns - without blisters. When blisters form, it is a second degree burn. However, these two can be managed to some extent using naturalistic treatment at home. The third degree burns penetrate epidermis and dermis ( layers of skin ) and extend deeper into body tissues. It damages nerves and may also damage blood vessels, fat, muscle and even the bone. They are very dangerous and may always leave a permanent weakness and a huge scar. These kind of burns pain less ( because your nerves are damaged ), but they are more badly burnt and signs are evident on the skin. Person shows signs of weakness, dizziness, fainting, sweating and extreme malaise.

Even among burns, not all burns are the same. The most common kind of burns are the ones that we get in the kitchen, while preparing a food item. But, burns can also be caused by exposure to certain chemicals, like sulfuric acid. Even the sun can burns our skin with its UV rays, causing a sunburn.

Burns usually take a whole day for the pain to go away. Some redness still remains. Our aim in using home remedies is to dull the pain significantly. Then we go on to describe ways to minimize scarring on the skin.

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 Simple and effective natural home remedies for burns

 1. Apply a mashed potato ( The best remedy for minor burns )
A potato is quite effective in soothing a burn. Studies have found potato peel to be useful in burn wound healing. We are going to use potato in this way.

After the initial pain has subsided, there still remains an underlying pain. Potato can again be used for this.

After Burn  Potato Peel Wound Dressing : 
Boil some potatoes. Now, peel off its skin and save it. Take a gauze bandage. Smudge the potato peel on inner side of bandage and tie it gently on the burn wound. Make sure it is tight enough to touch the burned skin, but not so much that it depresses the skin inwards. Keep this for a few hours, possible overnight and you should considerable relief from burn pain.

potato for burns
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2. Put it under cool running water ( the obvious one )
This remedy too provides quite a relief from a burn. I once got a burn by touching a resistor in the laboratory. There was hardly any way to apply any natural treatment. So, i just went to the tap and performed first aid.
Keep dipping your burned skin under cold running water for about 10 - 20 minutes. For some time, the pain will subside. However, it again pops up, although not as severe.
By using the running cool water treatment, one atleast reduces the pain to some extent.

cool running water for burns
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3. Ice ( but not immediately after a burn )
Ice is a brilliant remedy for a burn. However, it is advised not to use ice seconds after the burn. First, use the running cool water remedy, then apply ice on the burn. This is important because if you apply ice straightaway, it constricts blood flow to that region, which is harmful for wound healing. Your blood is rushing to the burn region to repair the damage immediately. In the process, the burn hurts. However, that healing is for the good.
So, only apply ice after 10 to 20 minutes after a burn, when you have used some other remedy to dull the pain. Then ice further reduces redness and curbs any swelling.

 And ice provides a lot of relief !

ice for burns
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4. Apply a cool tomato 
Cut a tomato over the skin and let the juice drip over there. Now, massage the burns area with the inside flesh of the tomato. Just as previous remedy, keep more tomatoes at hand in case the effect of the first one reduces.
Why it works ?
First off, tomatoes are great at cooling. Secondly, they contain lycopene, a special nutrient which is a powerful anti-oxidant and a great skin healer. It is known to prevent sunburns as well.

tomato for burns
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5. Honey
I would consider honey as the second best home remedy for burns ( after Potatoes ).  Honey has many benefits in case of burns.




6. Egg White Paste 
Egg whites are a natural source of protein, which when applied topically can accelerate wound healing.



egg white for burns
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7. Aloe Vera ( lovely remedy for burns )
Aloe Vera is the herbal remedy of choice for a burn. It is very soothing, anti-inflammatory, wound healer, anti- swelling and anti-blistering in nature. It is like the nature's perfect herb to cool the skin.



aloe vera for burns
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8. Apply Yogurt on the skin
Apply cool ( but not frozen ) yogurt on your mild burn. Yogurt is very healing and cooling. Its cooling effect that lasts a very long time. It can be applied after the initial cool water treatment. Yogurt is exceptionally good for burns because it is acidic, just like buttermilk. It restores the natural acidic pH of skin, which makes healing faster.

yogurt for burns
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9. Flour for burns 
Get some flour from the kitchen and quickly spread it over the entire area which got burned. Make sure that it contacts every part of the skin. Apply a good generous amount of flour. It should feel quite relieving on a burn.
Other foods like soy sauce, diluted vinegar ( either white or apple cider ) are also remedies for burns but the above ones are quite impressive.

flour for burns
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Home remedies for chemical burns 
If you caught a chemical burn from a substance, then one should first find out about the material safety. It is a chart that describes the safety and usage of most common chemicals. There, sometimes it is mentioned how to treat a burn of that material. So, you should go with the scientific advice.

If there is no information about the material, then a simple home remedy is to run it under plain water for a considerable amount of time. It runs down the chemical staying on skin. Make sure that the chemical has not spilled on clothing or accessories , like watch, rings, sunglasses. If it has, change them out.

After that, visit a hospital for chemical burns treatment.

You can also apply natural Aloe Vera quickly to the region, after it has been washed by ample water. It doesn't generally react with any chemical that we use in home or laboratories ( like acids) and can provide relief from a chemical burn. 

Home remedy for sun burn : One of the best remedies for a sunburn and a visible blister is to use Aloe Vera. Yes, it is simple and effective remedy for sunburns. Just do not rest until you have made the sun burn blister suppressed. Keep applying Aloe Vera over it. 

Home remedy for grease burn : Many women working in the kitchen come in contact with hot oil or equipment which can cause burns. Quickly apply potato in generous amount over the burn. 


                                  At a Glance
Potato Absorbs the heat
Tomato Cooling effect on burns
Yogurt Calms and soothes the skin
WaterA natural coolant
Honey Heals the skin helps in recovery

For steam burn, one needs to cool the skin quickly. Use potato for that. If you have witch hazel, use it to cover up the steam burn. After the pain reduced, one should apply a dressing to heal the skin.

Some other home remedies for burns

  • Coconut Oil : It has been noted to be effective for a regular grease type burn. It seems counter intuitive that an oil can reduce symptoms of a burn, but coconut oil is quite helpful for minor burns. 
  • Human Saliva : Using your own saliva is a remarkable burn remedy. There are some special kind of natural chemicals in our saliva which promote wound healing. That is why animals lick their wounds and it makes them better.
  • Paraffin Wax : Just by using plain old paraffin wax, one can relieve a burn. It is a nice moisturizer too.
  • Mustard : Apply a paste of mustard on a burn. Do not use a spicy product, or it will increase the discomfort, just regular mustard paste. 
  • Toothpaste : Most women dab some toothpaste on their small or large grease burns. See if this works. Avoid the gel based toothpastes. 
  • Cocoa Butter : Applying a thin paste of cocoa butter after washing the burn wound. It is great for wound healing. You can also go with regular butter. 
  • Lavender Essential Oil : Based on anecdotal evidence, it seems lavender oil is a working remedy for burns. However, I wouldn't recommend using it directly on skin. So, if you intend to use it, then dilute it in either coconut oil or olive oil. 
  • Witch hazel is one natural burns remedy. 

For severe burns, call for emergency medical services.